18 Good Reasons to Get the TV Out of Your Bedroom

Written byjoshua becker ·

Before we made the decision to intentionally live with less, we were just a typical family of four living in the suburbs. But since finding a rational approach to minimalism, our lives have changed in countless ways – some big, some small.

One change that seemed small at the time actually had a profound impact on the quality of our lives, marriage, and family. We removed the television from our bedroom. At first, it was just a 30-day experiment. But given the overwhelming benefits that accompanied its removal, it is a change we look back on with great fondness.

Consider the benefits:

1. More/Better sleep. The same statistics that tell us Americans watch over 35 hours of television/week are the same statistics that make it clear the lure of the screen is just too strong to turn off. No one sets out to spend 5 hours/day watching television. The temptation is too great… especially when we are tired. Not only does television in the bedroom keep us up later at night, but there are also studies that indicate watching television before bed actually disrupts sleep cycles. Removing the television from your bedroom results in more sleep and better sleep… which means you’ll have a better rested, more productive day.

2. What you think about last matters. The evening provides valuable opportunity to meditate, evaluate, and assess your day. This examination leads to learning from our mistakes and growing as humans. Unfortunately, many people will sacrifice this opportunity for the sake of entertainment.

3. What you think about first matters. Every morning begins with a clean slate and brand new opportunities. Allowing your television to guide your morning thoughts takes that blank canvas and begins painting. We would be wise to choose carefully who/what directs our morning thoughts rather than blindly allowing television producers to do it for us. After all, it sets the stage for the rest of the day.

4. Example for your kids. Children with televisions in their bedrooms score lower on school tests and are more likely to have sleep problems. Also, having a television in the bedroom is strongly associated with being overweight and a higher risk for smoking. And that’s a pretty strong argument to remove theirs and yours.

5. More conversation. As a married couple, some of your most important, intimate conversations will take place in your bedroom during the waning hours of the day… unless of course, the television is on instead.

6. More/Better sex. Couples who keep a TV in the bedroom have sex half as often as those who don’t. Probably because there are over a million things more stimulating than a man watching ESPN SportsCenter. And if you ask me, that should be reason enough…

7. Less clutter. Your television takes up space (even when hidden). And I haven’t met anybody who actually enjoys more clutter in their homes.

8. Less advertisements at your weakest. Studies reveal what we already know to be true: Consumers are more susceptible to advertisements when they are tired. Depletion leads us to feel as if we’ve been more thorough and thoughtful in our processing and therefore, we become more certain in our attitudes.

9. Realistic expectations on your marriage. In almost all regards, television rarely depicts the world and life accurately. As a result, too much television results in disillusionment about what to expect from the world around us. This can be most detrimental to our relationships when the unrealistic expectations are applied to our marriage, family, love, romance, and sexuality.

10. Rooms serve purposes. Kitchens are for cooking… Dining Rooms are for eating… Toy Rooms are for playing… Offices are for working… Rooms serve purposes. The better we define those rooms and their purposes, the more productive they become. Use your bedroom only for sleep and sex by taking work materials, computers, and televisions out of the sleeping environment.

11. Televisions attract dust. All electronics attract and trap dust… something about static electricity. While I don’t understand the physics, I see the result. And isn’t there enough dust already in your bedroom… why would you want to attract more?

12. Get ready faster. Having the television on while getting ready in the morning adds extra time to the process. And who wants to spend more time getting ready?

13. More reading. Light reading in the evening helps many fall asleep faster. But even if it doesn’t help you sleep, the benefits of reading still far outweigh the benefits of television. Removing the television from your bedroom will almost always encourage more reading in your life.

14. Going to sleep together. While some couples have successfully navigated the television schedule and actually go to sleep together (We watch the King of Queens every night and then fall asleep), we never could. Perhaps we’re less disciplined… but more likely, she liked watching TLC far more than I did. Removing the television helps foster intimacy by not just going to bed at the same time, but by falling asleep at the same time as well.

15. Less electricity/energy use. Household electronics continue to use energy and electricity even when powered off. It’s called standby-power and it amounts to 5-10% of your total electricity bill. One less television means one less financial drain on your checkbook.

16. Your attention is far too valuable. There are very important people in your life who need your attention every single day. Removing the television from your bedroom will help you give it to the people who need it the most.

17. Masking problems in your marriage. When two imperfect people come together to form an intimate union that shares everything, there are bound to be some problems along the way. Successful couples notice them, discuss them, and find compromise that makes both sides better. Unsuccessful couples don’t. Our marriages require us to be intentional and thoughtful. And that rarely happens when the television is on.

If words on a page aren’t quite enough for you or your partner, commit to try it out as a 30 day experimentation. Unplugging the television and moving it into a different room will take less than 3 minutes. There is an end in sight. You’ve got nothing to lose. And maybe, just maybe, a whole lot to gain.

Again, I’m not saying you have to remove the television from your bedroom. I’m just saying your life will be better if you do.

About Joshua Becker

Writer. Inspiring others to live more by owning less.WSJ Bestselling author of The More of Less.

Actually according to the physics of osmosis, having particles bound to an object in the room will cause more particles to enter the room. The reason is that particles stop entering the room when an equilibrium is reached: particles leaving the room = particles entering. However, if particles cannot leave the room (stuck on to television) we will have the same amount of particles entering but less leaving = More Dust In Bedroom.

My husband not only put a television in our bedroom, but attached a video game system to it as well. Last year we separated and are now going through a divorce. Never again will I allow that type of distraction in my bedroom, not good.

Oxymoronic article. The bedroom is for 2 things.. wait, unless you want to read – then it’s 3. One of the arguments against a tv can’t be to better define your rooms (i.e. sleeping and sex) and then say a benefit of not having a tv in your bedroom is you’ll do more reading in bed.

I am trying hard to be minimalist. It is very difficult when your partner doesn’t share the same passion. My husband says he needs the TV in the bedroom to unwind after work. I really object to it so I often sleep in another room (we have 7 bedrooms!). In the beginning when we first met I didn’t have a TV in the bedroom. About 6 years ago he brought a free one home from work and set it up. He then built under our house and put another free tv downstairs. We have a huge house and land I don’t want, a huge mortgage so I can’t work part time, 4 large screen tv’s I would easily throw away. At the weekend he’s leaves tv’s on all over the house and I can’t handle the noise – it’s such an intrusion. He says we’re building our future to make things simple but I feel like we have totally different ideas about what simple is. I have made major changes around the house to make things minimal and he’s ok with that but talk about getting rid of tv’s or getting a smaller house and he won’t even discuss it. My husband is a wonderful man and I love him but he’s very stubborn. Any blogs on what to do in this circumstance?

I was a minimalist for years. I married a wonderful woman 7 months ago who isn’t like-minded in regards to televisions and more specifically in the bedroom. We have one in our bedroom and I have realized why I got rid of mine. All of the negative issue that have been stated in the post above have found their way back into our bedroom. My dilemma is how to convince my wife that we need to make a change and soon.

Agree with much of your article…good you put it out there. One more thing to consider. Many of the newer flat screens, other “smart” technology allows hackers, or those “Authorized”, into your private space. EEW! Who wants that in their bedrooms! I’m all for the older models of devices which came before all of the hype-and tech-enabled nefarious activity.

Removing the television from your bedroom might get you more sleep but, in my experience, so does removing work from your morning. Or the early part of the morning anyway. Also solves #12, the need to get ready faster. This is all highly theoretical of course since I hardly ever watch TV – internet is my drug of choice.

I so wish I could share this article with my husband. I’m exhausted most days with the disturbed sleep due to the Tv on. Actually look forward to days when he’s travelling so I can get a full nights rest.

Unless you’re a victim of domestic violence, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t share this article with your husband; and if you do suffer from domestic violence, you have more important issues to work on.

I can totally understand alot of the comments from others pertaining to having a Television in the bedroom .
I love my husband dearly & he’s a good man.
& it’s pretty sad that we don’t share the same passion when it comes to the t v
He wants to burn the t v all night long it’s like he was born with a t v
It’s not fair to me. Because I can’t go to sleep with it being on its too much of a distraction for me along with being. Noisy .
I need to be able to fall asleep without the noise. & fully rested for the next day & the other thing is he’s. Retired & I’m not.

My husband and I are newlyweds, and we made an agreement to not have television or cellphones in our bedroom at all. The bedroom is designated for emotional, spiritual, and physical intimacy….and also for sleeping. We are very intentional about it, and we have absolutely seen the value in keeping technology out of the bedroom.

We also have a designated TV room. We decided to design our living room to foster conversation and relationships, rather than be the place that everyone sits next to each other and stares at a screen. This is also something we have enjoyed.

My husband of over 30 years prefers the tv in the living room and in his bedroom to me, so therefore I enjoy my own life in my own room with my own music, books, and crafts. He insists that every tv in the house be on loud 24 /7. I hate the distraction and noise. Why are we still married? It’s complicated. I advise all married couples to prefer each other over televisions (etc) and have a true marriage instead of just a live in pay check and housekeeper that must live like hired help in a separate room (that would be me).